


The Pain

by Devil_In_Disguise



Category: Arrow (TV 2012), The Flash (TV 2014)
Genre: I started this at three in the morning, I'm insane, M/M, and sleep deprived
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-09-11
Updated: 2015-09-11
Packaged: 2018-04-20 05:35:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,335
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4775600
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Devil_In_Disguise/pseuds/Devil_In_Disguise
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Oliver gets a second chance. Five minutes of knowing what is to come. Five minutes to choose to get on the Gambit or to save himself from the Island. What will he choose?</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Pain

**Author's Note:**

> So I woke up at two thirty this morning after having a dream about being chased by dragons, and somehow that made me think, I wonder if Oliver would stop himself from getting on the Queen's Gambit if he had the chance I should write that tomorrow. I then tried to go back to sleep and I swear not five minutes later I heard this.
> 
> Oliver: Devil_In_Disguise, you have failed this fandom.  
> Me: I'm going crazy.  
> Oliver: Please, you were already crazy without my help. But on to more important matters, you have a story to write. I have thoughts you need to share with the world.  
> Me: Go away Oliver, I'm tired, I'll share your thoughts tomorrow.  
> Oliver: You don't think I'm tired? You don't think I'd much rather be in my bed curled up with my Barry getting some sleep after a good night of catching bad guys and incredible sex instead of here threatening you? Of course I would. But we all have to do we don't want to sometimes. Now get up and write that story or I'll shoot arrows through both of your eyes and you'll never be able to read another fic again.  
> Me: Alright, I'm going, sheesh. 
> 
> This is what happens when you get sleep deprived people, the more violent half of your OTP starts attacking you in your head. 
> 
> Enjoy!

Oliver feels himself being pulled along by a strange force. It reminded him of when Barry would take him places at super speed, but it was colder somehow, unfamiliar, and Oliver didn’t like unfamiliar. The force yanked him carelessly through the air and Oliver tried to find it, something he could fight, but there was nothing. A voice that sounded strangely like his own filled his head. “You have five minutes. You may change your decision or choose to leave it. Know that after those five minutes you will have no memory of the future you have already lived and your choice will define your new future.” Oliver didn’t understand, and it was making him want to scream. Then suddenly liver felt himself crash down into something solid. He stood up warily and observed his surroundings. When he realized where he was he froze in shock.

A mere ten feet in front of him was the Queen’s Gambit, fully operational and about to leave from Starling Harbor. He takes out the cell phone he feels in his pocket and turns it on. The screen glares up at him with the texts he’d exchanged with Sara the day they left together on that doomed boat. He sees his father, alive and well, beckoning him to get on so they could leave. Oliver tries to call out to him. To warn him of his fate. But he finds himself incapable of it, as if he’s momentarily gone mute. His heart sinks as he realizes he can’t save his father. Then a thought enters his mind.

He can save himself.

He has five minutes to change his fate or leave it the way it is. Five minutes of knowing his future. Five minutes to change everything. He can turn around right now. Go home and be there to grieve with his mother and Thea, to help them through this. He can save himself from the torment, from the loss of his humanity, from the damage, from the Island, from the pain.

He thinks of the pain.

But then he thinks of Thea. Of the wonderful person she’s become. The person that fights for what she believes in, and is independent and strong. Thinks of how she’s flourished from the stuck up person she was as a child. How her pain opened her eyes to the world outside of the privileged rich. How she’s discovered her happiness with a man from the Glades who she might never have given a second glance to.

He thinks of the pain.

But then he thinks of Sara. All the pain she has gone through, only to come out so strong, determined, and fierce, not at all the naïve party girl she once was. The closeness they have because of their shared experiences. The Canary, always there to work with him, to ground him. 

He thinks of the pain.

But then he thinks of Laurel. The woman he thought he’d always be in love with. Thinks of how she grew in his absence, how she found the one that was truly right for her. How she’d become happy. Thinks of the friendship they are still able to share despite his actions. 

He thinks of the pain.

But then he thinks of Tommy. The man who had to mourn his best friend, his brother, for five years. But through his loss he’d found his love in the last place he expected. He’d matured and become the amazing person very few people saw hiding inside of him. The first older brother Oliver ever had. With him through everything as a child, and after a rocky reunion due to old flames and new hobbies, was there through everything now, as he would always be. 

He thinks of the pain. 

But then he thinks of Roy. His younger brother. The man who makes his sister happy. The boy who hated the world who became a man who was making a difference in it, all because he’d had someone there to save him in more ways than one. Arsenal, the man he knew would always have his back. 

He thinks of the pain. 

But then he thinks of Digg. The man who he might never meet. The rock who had gotten him through so much. His voice of reason. His second older brother. The friend he’d never knew he needed. 

He thinks of the pain.

But then he thinks of Felicity. His quirky IT girl. Stuck in her IT cubicle, an insignificant worker in a throng, perhaps another conquest in his long line. Never appreciated for the special, one-of-a-kind woman that she is. Never having a guy in a hood with a bow and arrow to tell her she could be so much more.

He thinks of the pain. 

But then he thinks of his city. Of the Glades that would be entirely destroyed. Of all the lives that would never have been saved. Of a city without hope. Of a city without a defender. Where villains have no one to fear, and innocents have no one to believe in. 

He thinks of the pain. 

But then he thinks of himself. The man who cares for others instead of using them. The man who changed the lives of so many. The man who strived to be good. The man who protected his city. The man his loved ones could be proud of, even when he couldn’t be proud of himself. The man who inspired and gave hope to those without. The man who started a new age. The man who had changed the world for the better. 

He thinks of the pain.

But then he thinks of Barry. His partner. His love. His heart. His soul. His light in the darkness. The man who could see the best in him even when he was at his worst. The man who made him see the best in himself. The man who made him smile, made him feel, made him love. The man who would stand beside him no matter what. The man he wanted at his side no matter what. The man he loved more than life itself. The man who loved him in return.

He thinks of the pain, but he knows that it’s worth it. 

He steps on the boat as the first crack of thunder rolls overhead.

Oliver jolts straight up in bed, disoriented but content, at peace for once. 

“Did you have another nightmare?” A sleepy voice sounded from beside him, and he glances over to see Barry’s gorgeous green eyes watching him in concern.

"No, it wasn’t a nightmare. It was...” Oliver couldn’t find the words to describe his dream. Usually talking to Barry came almost frighteningly natural to him, but this dream, this truth, he couldn’t speak of it. It was somehow private, intimate, for just him to know.

Luckily, Barry seemed to understand like he always did somehow. 

“That’s too bad. Because if it was a nightmare I’d have an excuse to snuggle you even more.” The speedster teased even as a yawn overtook him. Oliver can’t stop a fond grin from forming on his face. “I’ve changed my mind, it was totally a nightmare.” He joked back. “I knew it.” Barry mock sighed very dramatically as the Central City hero gently pushed Oliver back down onto the bed before curling up on his bare chest and pressing a sleepy kiss to his neck. 

“Don’t worry, I’ll protect you. You’re safe here. You’re loved here.” Despite his earlier teasing Barry was dead serious as he spoke. Oliver wrapped his arms tight around his partner and kissed the top of his head. “I love you too.” Barry smiled and nuzzled Oliver’s chest contently as his eyes fluttered shut. Oliver watched his love drift off into sleep again, waiting until Barry’s breath completely evened out before closing his eyes once more. 

In the end, nothing could take away the pain, but he knows he’d go through again and again for what he has now.

**Author's Note:**

> Me: There. Are you satisfied?  
> Oliver: You could have put something about Barry and I having mind-blowing sex in there somewhere.  
> Me: I promise I'll write some smut soon. Now can I please go back to sleep?  
> Oliver: I suppose. 
> 
> Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed that, and I know I have a bunch of comments to respond to on other stories, but I've been super busy. I'll try to do it later today after I've gotten a bit more sleep. I'll see you all again soon, and remember, Never Stop Writing!


End file.
